Time will tell, but it appears that Pope Benedict has made an excellent choice in naming Milwaukee Archbishop Timothy Dolan as the new Archbishop of New York. Like Cardinal Egan, he is politically and theologically orthodox, but unlike Egan, he is first and foremost a spiritual shepherd of souls.
The New York Archdiocese, with 2.5 million Catholics, is second to Los Angeles in size. Its territory includes Manhattan, Staten Island, Bronx, and seven counties stretching up the Hudson River to within twenty miles of Albany. However, the Archbishop of New York, presiding over a world cultural, financial and media center, has traditionally wielded national and international influence. Former Archbishops of New York, such as Cardinals Spellman, Cooke and O'Connor, have been the public face of American Catholicism, tangling with the nation's leaders when necessary, and providing spiritual counsel. They have typically been large personalities, seen by New Yorkers of all faiths as fathers of the city.
Unfortunately the incumbent, Cardinal Egan, has seen his role as very much a business manager. Aloof from his priests and people, he has been zealous in closing schools and parishes, streamlining Archdiocesan operations, and restoring financial stability to a system that was tottering after the O'Connor years.
Many New Yorkers will never forget that weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Cardinal Egan left town for a month to preside over a meeting of bishops in Rome. Given that many of the dead police and fire personnel were Catholic, it would be hard to imagine Cardinal O'Connor, or most of New York's previous Archbishops ignoring their pastoral obligations in the aftermath of such a crisis.
The Church in America is confronted as never before with radical national leadership, promoting perverted science, perverted lifestyles, abortion and assaults on faith and the freedom and dignity of the individual. American Catholics need a man who is both grounded in truth and a shepherd of souls, who will boldly teach and sanctify and, when necessary, speak truth to power. If Pope Benedict XVI has appointed a man like himself, America will have a great, new Catholic leader at a time when leadership is sorely needed.
The New York Archdiocese, with 2.5 million Catholics, is second to Los Angeles in size. Its territory includes Manhattan, Staten Island, Bronx, and seven counties stretching up the Hudson River to within twenty miles of Albany. However, the Archbishop of New York, presiding over a world cultural, financial and media center, has traditionally wielded national and international influence. Former Archbishops of New York, such as Cardinals Spellman, Cooke and O'Connor, have been the public face of American Catholicism, tangling with the nation's leaders when necessary, and providing spiritual counsel. They have typically been large personalities, seen by New Yorkers of all faiths as fathers of the city.
Unfortunately the incumbent, Cardinal Egan, has seen his role as very much a business manager. Aloof from his priests and people, he has been zealous in closing schools and parishes, streamlining Archdiocesan operations, and restoring financial stability to a system that was tottering after the O'Connor years.
Many New Yorkers will never forget that weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Cardinal Egan left town for a month to preside over a meeting of bishops in Rome. Given that many of the dead police and fire personnel were Catholic, it would be hard to imagine Cardinal O'Connor, or most of New York's previous Archbishops ignoring their pastoral obligations in the aftermath of such a crisis.
The Church in America is confronted as never before with radical national leadership, promoting perverted science, perverted lifestyles, abortion and assaults on faith and the freedom and dignity of the individual. American Catholics need a man who is both grounded in truth and a shepherd of souls, who will boldly teach and sanctify and, when necessary, speak truth to power. If Pope Benedict XVI has appointed a man like himself, America will have a great, new Catholic leader at a time when leadership is sorely needed.
